Expedition's York gets campus statue

More than 200 years after he helped change the face of the United States, York, the only African American explorer with the Lewis and Clark Expedition, will be honored with a statue at Lewis & Clark College. "York: Terra Incognita" will be dedicated at 10 a.m. May 8 at its permanent spot outside the Watzek Library.

View full sizeLos Angeles artist Alison Saar created a statue of York for Lewis & Clark College. She sought to reflect York’s strength as a participant in the Corps of Discovery yet also the fact that he was a slave.

Los Angeles sculptor Alison Saar created the 6-foot-tall brass figure standing on a rock, bare-chested and holding a rifle. The statue's back is covered with whipping scars.

"My idea may not be easy for some people to take, and a few may think that I've done him a disservice," Saar said. "But I wanted people to see a classic figure -- strong and bold from the front, but on the backside, the untold part of his story as a slave."

No sketches or paintings of York exist, so Saar set out to create a stylized portrait that represents him as a man equal to the two-year adventure yet a slave who received none of the rewards the others did. Debate still continues over whether William Clark freed or sold York after the journey.

Darrell Millner, a professor of black studies at Portland State University and an authority on York, said Saar's concept stood out from the other proposals. "I thought that the scarring reference was remarkable and hope the statue will bring York's story to those who don't know about him," Millner said. "It will be a long-standing statement about an important part of our history."

Linda Tesner, director of the college's Ronna and Eric Hoffman Gallery of Contemporary Art, expects the sculpture to generate discussion in the months ahead.

"It's not a benign work of art, and we're displaying it in a prominent place on campus," Tesner said. "There are few sculptures anywhere that address this theme."